Shivaji and His Times c5.s1.3

c5.s1.3

So, the two brothers came back to their home at Ellora and lived there by agriculture for the next few years. One night Maloji, while watching his crops in the field, noticed a big snake coming out of a hole, and following the popular belief that snakes guard buried treasure he dug the place up and discovered seven pots full of gold coins underground. Here at last were the means of gratifying their ambition. Lodging the treasure with an honest banker at Chamargunda, they bought horses, saddles, arms and tents and equipped a force of one thousand troopers, at whose head they offered their swords to any master that would pay them. Joining a leader of banditti named Nimbalkar (of Phaltan), they soon gained so much importance and power that the decadent Nizam-Shahi Government was glad to enrol them among its captains. This happened at the beginning of the 17th century, when Akbar's conquest of the capital Ahmadnagar had thrown that monarchy into confusion and disruption, which raised the value of able mercenary bands and offered unlimited opportunities of advancement to their captains. Jadav Rao had no objection now to giving his daughter in marriage to the son of the newly-exalted Bhonslé.